Is it the grape or is it the cork? That is the question I posed to myself this evening. Well in truth I had no idea I was posing that question until I came upon a pretty nasty bottle of Ironstone Vineyards 2002 Merlot. I found it in the wine rack and opened it. Capsule off the first thing I see is the plastic cork ... after removal and taste it was all pruney and nasty to drink - five minutes later it was totally undrinkable. Right beside the Merlot on the rack was a bottle of 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon, again under plastic cork, I popped that one also. There was some fruit here, not all-together fresh but not unpleasant either, rich sweet plum, cherry/raspberry jam with a hint of oxidative sweetness - though this one was at least drinkable. So, is it the grape or the cork,? Which one ruined the Merlot (its age or the closure) and did the Cab have the stuffing to combat the bad closure? This is a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, surrounded by an enigma ... or something like that. Let the debate begin, meanwhile I am going to sip at this wine before it completely goes to pot. Cheers.
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